Commissioners Approve Tax Levies

The Cheyenne County Commissioners Monday approved the property tax levies for tax districts in Cheyenne County.

The valuation for 2018 decreased from $1,581,431,435 in 2017 to $1,475,380,488 for 2018. Likewise, the Cheyenne County Commissioners earlier this year approved lowering the mill levy for the county. The County’s mill levy receded from .419891 in 2017 to .409 for 2018. In 2017, the .416205 requested for the General Fund generated $6,582,000, the County Fair requested .00337 mills for $53,293 and the Veterans’s Aid .00316 for $5,000. For 2018, the budgets were reduced to .405133 ($5,977,250) for the General Fund, .003528 ($52,057) mills for the County Fair and .00339 ($5,000) for the Veteran’s Aid.

The Sidney Fire District total valuation fell from $334,561,337 in 2017 to $318,169,095 in 2018. The District increased its mill levy slightly from .019837 in 2017 to .021535 in 2018,  generating $68,516.70 compared to $66,366.27 in 2017. The District also has a .004714 mill levy for its $15,000 bond issue.

The Dalton and Gurley Fire District valuation decreased from $387,632,993 in 2017 to $367,001,405 in 2018. The total levy for the District changed from .021955 in 2017 to .024007, generating $88,105, in 2018.

The Lodgepole Fire District saw a change from .043589 mills  in 2017 to .046474 mills in 2018. The Potter Fire District experienced a loss in valuation from $214,653,498 in 2017 to $204,564,350 in 2018. Likewise, the mill levy changed from .04747 in 2017 to .045174 for 2018, generating $92,409.35.

The city of Sidney saw a decrease in valuation from $507,219,238 in 2017 to $461,171,073 in 2018. The mill levy 2017 mill levy of .531496 generated 2,695,848.57. The 2018 mill levy of .531496 will generate $2,451,106.38.

In other business, the commissioners approved a funding request in support of the Cabela's Holiday Shootout basketball tournament. Sidney High School Activities Director Mike Brockhaus and Tourism Director Kevin Howard appeared before the commissioners Monday. Howard said the tournament includes numerous hotel rooms, not including team rooms, and various expenditures related to a three-day tournament.

“We need to support these events that spend money other than lodging tax,” Howard said.

This is the eighth year the tourism board has supported the tournament.

The board also opened bids for a new tractor with attachments for the buildings and grounds department. One bid was submitted by 21st Century Equipment for a John Deer 1575. With attachments and $10,000 trade-in allowance, the new tractor comes in at $28,500.

Acceptance of the bid is contingent on Buildings and Grounds Supervisor Roger Connelly's approval of the proposal.